The Shadow Kingdom

Chapter 26 - Know Thyself

Anessa is waiting for me when I arrive at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport. She waves at me from the arrival gate, and for once, there are no bodyguards with me. Adrian is gone, Tiberius is dead, and Diana is playing war-games against an invisible enemy.

"Welcome to India." Anessa hugs me, and I pat her back. She and Adrian were friends long before I existed. This must be just as painful for her as it is for me. "We have a lot to talk about."

Anessa has a Porsche 918 Spyder in the parking lot, and seeing it almost brings me to tears. It is like finding an oasis in the desert. I've been in India for less than an hour, and I already can't stand the heat. Mumbai in February is like New York City in July. I close my eyes and relish in the comfort of the wind against my skin.

I pay no attention to Anessa's driving. The traffic in this city is a nightmare, and I have a feeling Anessa doesn't spend a lot of time here. But when I open my eyes, we're leaving the city limits. "Where are we going?" I ask.

"You'll see." She answers cryptically. About an hour after leaving the city, we arrive at a large mountain range. Anessa stops in front of a gate protected by armed guards. They remind me of Praesidium's mercenaries, but they have a different symbol, a six-pointed star inside a circle. The men see Anessa's face and they bow, opening the gate for us. "This is Mount Kalsubai. My family lives here."

"I assume House Hassan has its own private army too." My tone is unwarrantedly derisive, but I don't give much thought to it. Under the circumstances, I've earned the right to be a little irritable.

"You assume correctly." We drive uphill along a treacherously winding road. "Our PMC is called Kartikeya, named after the Hindu god of war."

On the side of Mount Kalsubai is an enormous residence rivalling the Seven Hills Manor. I thought Augustus loved to indulge his vanity, but clearly, Samir is not to be outdone. "This place is called Vimana Acropolis. The house itself is just a front. There is a vast network of tunnels and stretch deep into the mountain. If a nuclear war ever happens, this would be the ideal place to hide from it." Anessa laughs.

Two Kartikeya mercenaries guard the front door. The aboveground portion of Vimana is somewhat smaller than the mansion of Seven Hills, which leads me to believe that the majority of the structure must be inside the mountain. Being an earthmover must be very useful in such a place. And I'm sure I'll find an abundance of fantastic and awe-inspiring things inside.

The guards push the towering stone doors, and the doors make an unpleasant grinding sound as they swing open. Instead of a staircase leading upwards, the main entrance is the top landing, shaped like a dais. From here Vimana only goes deeper and lower.

The windows quickly disappear as the inner sections are lit entirely by artificial lighting. Unlike the cosmopolitan style of Seven Hills, Vimana is adorned by a combination of classical Arabian and Persian art. The walls and pillars are all carved into beautifully elaborate patterns, all with Islamic and Zoroastrian characteristics. Intricately woven silk carpets cover the walls in place of paintings. "This place doesn't feel particularly Indian." I try to make some small talk.

"Our dynasty is originally from Arabia. Over the generations, we spread eastward and eventually we made Mumbai our new home. When my great-grandfather built this place though, his heart was still in the old country." Anessa replies.

In what I assume is the grand stateroom, there are four shallow indoor pools in the corners, each of them tempting me to run my hand over them. There are also these stone statues of soldiers carrying shields and spears. These statues are as good as real soldiers in the hands of a powerful earthmover. And I can only imagine how powerful a king like Samir must be.